TravelBio

Our last stop (aside from docking back in the US) was on the Pacific side of Costa Rica. We first docked pretty much in the middle of nowhere – I’m not sure why or how they chose the spot – and then the plan was to meet back up with the ship three days later in Puntarenas. Robb had suggested that we rent a house near the beach, and we agreed to it if Robb could find an affordable place. Costa Rica; we're getting closer to home! Even when Robb showed us pictures of the cheap house he booked in a place called Jaco I was still skeptical, thinking we might find out about other charges or get ripped off somehow. It was not tied to Costa Rica in any way, just that Robb kind of had a knack for coming up with ideas that seemed good but had a catch. Like when we went bowling in Kobe – it sounded like a fun plan and Robb claimed it was only $13 a lane. We had a good time, although Robb thought he had already paid at the front desk and then we found out soon after we left – as...

After leaving Japan, we had a long trip ahead of us. We first sailed for 9 days to Honolulu, Hawaii, where we stopped for the day only. Before and after Hawaii classes picked up since we had more uninterrupted time on the ship than nearly any other point on the journey (Cape Town to Chennai was 13 days straight). Along our way to Honolulu we passed over the International Date Line and gained 24 hours, repeating a full day. We didn't have any classes, although it hardly made up for the 24 times that we lost an hour of sleep during our trip (as we changed time zones). Hawaii was a relief to be sure, although a short one. We were grateful to get off the ship after sailing for 9 days and knowing that 9 more awaited us before we would reach land again. It was also nice to be back in the US, although an odd feeling considering our trip was not yet over. Like many others, I had never been to Hawaii, so our stopover was another new port to explore. It happened to be Thanks...

Almost two years on, here is a summary of the last Asian port of our Semester at Sea voyage. After leaving Shanghai, we sailed to Kobe, Japan. I kept up a journal of the days in Japan but it is at my house at Ohio State (I am at my parent’s house for a few weeks before the start of my last fall quarter) – instead of waiting to pick it up I’ll give you a brief rundown from what I can remember.  Of all the ports we had been to thus far, Japan was on one hand the most like home, yet definitely different. I say it was similar to home simply because it was the most ‘developed’ and ‘Westernized’ of the countries on our itinerary, especially in the cities. Yet Japan’s culture is unique – for much of its history its language, food and customs were totally separate from the West. Like I said, we docked in Kobe, a city on the southern part of the main island of Japan. Kobe was definitely a modern city, although it seemed on the small side, especially compared to Japanese...

Wow I just looked at my blog for the first time in over a year...it's too bad I never got to updating it or adding in more info from my subsequent trips after Semester at Sea. I just finished summer classes here at Ohio State (now I'm a senior, almost done) and will have a few weeks until fall quarter starts up again. I am hoping to go back through the cobwebs and post a few more details about SAS on the blog. Also I'd like to share a little from my trip to Ecuador and to Europe last summer - or at least what I can remember. I know those of you (the few!) who were reading while I was on the MV Explorer have long since stopped, but thanks for following me. I'll let some of you know that I plan on posting a few updates. Hope everyone is doing well.